Only he changed clothes; the two misses took the opportunity to bathe.

Dubian Che donned a light suit and, with hands in his pockets, descended the stairs.

With his casual stride and his handsome, delicate features exuding confidence with every move, the servants were convinced he must be the young master.

The two madams watched Dubian Che with admiration.

Watching him, Mrs. Kiyono thought, if only she had indeed had twins, if Kiyono Lin had had a brother, perhaps this would be the sight greeting her as her own son descended the staircase.

Thinking of her daughter, she couldn't help but speak to Dubian Che as he entered the room,

"Mr. Dubian, how I wish you were my son."

"Mr. Dubian is going to be my son, you can't steal him," Mrs. Jiutiao, dressed in a red gown showcasing her lovely shoulders, said with a smile.

Mrs. Kiyono didn't mean it that way, but she didn't want to reveal too much emotion and prepared to go along with her to keep up the joke.

Just as she was about to speak, Dubian Che suddenly said, "Kiyono Lin is already quite remarkable."

Mrs. Kiyono looked at him, not expecting a young man she'd barely met to instantly grasp the meaning of her previous comment.

She decided not to engage in Mrs. Jiutiao's jest anymore.

"Remarkable, how?" she asked with interest.

"When I first met Kiyono Lin, like most people, I thought a person who hates lying, who doesn't lie or associate with liars, must have some sort of issue."

"And now?" Mrs. Kiyono asked, glancing behind Dubian Che.

"Now..." Dubian Che casually picked up a juice from the long table laden with food and cake, "no one can compare to her in my heart, not in terms of greatness nor excellence."

"Because of her looks, right?" Mrs. Jiutiao suggested.

"She certainly looks outstanding, as beautiful as Meiji, but that's not the point. My first impression of both Meiji and Kiyono Lin was negative."

Dubian Che continued,

"Those merchants who just happened to seize an opportunity to make a fortune, they are respected more for their wealth than their quality as a person; if they miss that chance, or squander their fortune, they're no different from a wanderer on the street, in my eyes. I wouldn't consider such people to be great or remarkable."

"Kiyono Lin is different. You may not approve of her methods or even think them foolish, but one way or another, sooner or later, you'll be amazed by her determination, admire her persistence. She'll move you, captivate you."

After a long speech, Dubian Che took a small sip of his juice.

"She's not as good as you say," Mrs. Kiyono mused, looking wistfully at Dubian Che, her words seemingly for him or someone behind him, "You might not know, but in our circles, she's the least popular person, just go out and you'll hear a host of rumors about her, even the servants reject her behind her back."

"That kind of thing," Dubian Che laughed, "doesn't matter to me at all."

"Hmm?" Both madams showed confusion in their gaze.

"Since Kiyono Lin was sixteen, or rather since she was fifteen," he said, "I've been by her side, up until today, her seventeenth birthday. I don't need to understand her through others; it's they who should come to me, if they want to know about her."

"If you disclose my information without understanding the law, I can ask a lawyer to enlighten you," Kiyono Lin's voice came from behind.

Dubian Che turned around, looking up to Kiyono Lin on the stairs.

She wore a simple dress to meet her mother's demand, light blue, cool and indifferent.

Each time he saw her, she seemed even prettier than before, radiating a fascinating glow.

"Long live the right to privacy," Dubian Che raised his juice toward her, grinning slightly.

Under the grand, glittering lights of the palace, his smile was full of understanding and trust. Anyone who saw it would think themselves favored by the entire world.

The maids were entranced and intoxicated, but Kiyono Lin paid them no heed.

Descending the stairs with grace, her cherry-colored lips uttered, "Are you imitating Gatsby?"

"If I had the money, I'd gladly play the part, but there's a small issue."

"Need Meiji to sign a permit for your actions?"

"The one playing Daisy must be an actress uninterested in humanity; otherwise, she would have left everything and run away with me that autumn night five years ago, not wait for me to come back wealthy. Of course," Dubian Che said with a laugh, "Meiji's permit is a must."

He finished speaking as Kiyono Lin had already descended the stairs, approaching the three of them.

"Mother, Mrs. Jiutiao," she curtsied ever so slightly.

"Happy birthday, Lin," Mrs. Jiutiao said with a smile.

"Thank you, Auntie."

"Happy birthday," Dubian Che said, following up.

Kiyono Lin turned around, surprised, "Oh, you're still here?"

"If I'm not here, where else could I go? This is my home too."

"Asking your Meiji for permission to act? Or are you planning on a night swim in Tokyo Bay?"

"Swimming is just my way of exercising my body, not because I love swimming that much, let alone night swimming to such an extent..."

"Thank you, happy birthday to you too."

"Listen to me when I'm speaking!"

The two Mrs. watched them, unconsciously revealing elegant smiles.

Not long after, Jiutiao Meijie came downstairs in a blood-red dress, similar in color to Mrs. Jiutiao's but different in style.

Mrs. Jiutiao was dignified and noble, with a touch of seduction, while she had the style of a haughty young queen.

Going downstairs, Dubian Che stretched out his hand to hold her slender, ring-adorned hand.

"It's my birthday, yet it seems like it's yours," he said in a low laugh.

"Shall I hold you then?" Jiutiao Meijie looked at him seductively.

"Wait for your birthday?" Saying this, Dubian Che leaned in and smelled her hair, "You even washed your hair."

"What about it?"

"Did you not have a falling out with Kiyono Lin? So rude to just wash your hair at her place?"

"The Kiyono family is the Kiyono family, Kiyono Lin is Kiyono Lin."

"So, Kiyono Lin isn't actually the Kiyono family's child? Telling me such a secret, I hope I won't be silenced."

Jiutiao Meijie pinched his hand.

Because she could see through lies and disliked lying, Kiyono Lin's birthday was only celebrated by the five of them—more desolate than the previous years, which only had four people (information leaked untraceably by Mrs. Kiyono).

After a simple exchange of birthday gifts, Dubian Che received a set of silver cufflinks.

Kiyono Lin, after receiving a hair tie, propped her chin and pondered for a moment, "Did you buy it in Ginza?"

"No."

Kiyono Lin nodded, just like the last night of a family camping trip when she said, 'You'll miss me,' and Dubian Che answered, 'Not at all'—whether admitting or lying, as long as he speaks, he's actually telling her the truth.

If he didn't want to speak, he'd shift the topic or simply not respond.

Mrs. Kiyono's gift was nothing to talk about, claiming to have bought him a horse at the racetrack and offering to take him out during a holiday.

And Mrs. Jiutiao, she finally gave Dubian Che the fan she had promised him during the New Year, engraved with "Sovereign."

A line from "The Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves" which showed it indeed was an antique fan.

Now, the era names of the Island Country have started to reflect the ancient texts of the Island Country—"Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves"—no longer taking words from ancient Chinese texts.

Jiutiao Meijie gave Kiyono Lin an old book—if Dubian Che wasn't mistaken, it was one he had read long ago and left at her villa; could it be something she picked up conveniently? Recycling waste?

Jiutiao Meijie gave Dubian Che the apartment he was currently living in—except for room 602, where Mayi Asuka lived.

"...Do I sense a warning here?"

"And you still have doubts about it?" Jiutiao Meijie slowly opened the fan belonging to Dubian Che, examining the characters "Sovereign."

She did not show any aversion to the Jiutiao family's heirloom, or perhaps because the fan had been in her mother's possession for many years, it now belonged to Dubian Che.

"You don't have to worry about the apartment, someone will take care of it, and the rent will be your pocket money." She folded the fan and handed it to Dubian Che.

While they were talking, an argument broke out on the other side for some reason.

Kiyono Lin and her mother, a heated and intentionally suppressed debate.

Mrs. Kiyono was resolute, her face showing inadvertent sorrow, while Kiyono Lin wore a cold expression.

PS: Thanks again to [Arima Kaname] for becoming my second Alliance Hierarch.

I won't stay up late tonight, I'll write until midnight and sleep, I'll write as much as I can, and finish the rest tomorrow. Over the next two days, I'll complete the added chapter—I'm sorry for the inconvenience.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.